Larne Cancer Research UK store to close after almost 30 years

Despite shops across the UK re-opening following lockdown, the charity confirmed that as the lease has expired, its Main Street branch will remain closed.

Customers and volunteers at the shop have helped raise £1,518,379 to help beat cancer sooner since it opened in 1991.

The closure, which affects one full-time and two part-time members of staff together with seven volunteers, coincides with the launch of an urgent new TV appeal to help get Cancer Research UK’s life-saving work back on track.

Thanks to the generosity of its supporters, the charity currently funds around 50 per cent of all cancer research in the UK.

However, as a direct result of the coronavirus pandemic, it expects to see its fundraising income decline by up to 25 per cent in the next financial year – putting this life-saving research at risk.

Area trading manager Kathryn Gallagher issued a heartfelt thanks to all the staff and volunteers who have kept the shop going for 29 years.

“We’ve had some of the most amazing staff and volunteers in the Larne shop and they have done a fantastic job over the years,” she said. “I want to say a huge thank you to each and every one of them.

“Now, more than ever, we need to raise as much money as possible to fund life-saving research and that means investing our resources in a way that maximises profit, awareness and supporter engagement. With this in mind, I sincerely hope our customers will continue to support the charity and visit our other shops in the wider area.”

Cancer Research UK spent more than £2 million last year in Northern Ireland on some of the UK’s leading scientific and clinical research.